As is well-known, the repetitious use of medical syringes without proper sterilization is in a large part responsible for the tragic spread of diseases, such as AIDS and Hepatitis B, among others. This problem has resulted in the attempted development of disposable syringes which are produced and made available to anyone requesting them. Unfortunately, these so-called "disposable" syringes are disposable in theory only and, in actual practice, are readily capable of re-use, as are conventional syringes. Moreover, since sterilization of reusable syringes requires special equipment and is time consuming and expensive, the use of the cheaper and so-called expendable disposable syringes has proliferated.
Syringes intended for a single use are also known. A wide variety of such syringes have been developed. However, most of them are complex in structure and thus, expensive to make. For example, one such device comprises a combined ampoule and syringe in which the piston or plunger is provided with a joint at the end placed inside the cylinder of the syringe. The joint, which is separable from the piston, is designed to remain in its final position at the bottom of the cylinder when the injection is completed. Other such devices of this sort have other drawbacks.
There exists, therefore, a need for a single use, destructible, medical syringe which does not exhibit the disadvantages and drawbacks of the known disposable syringes. The present invention fulfills such a need.